Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Chapter 42 I dare not
In front of the Fengxian Hall, Zhu Yunwen tried hard to maintain his demeanor and look dignified.

A few days ago, Zhu Yunwen was panicked when he saw Zhu Yunhuan standing behind his grandfather to accept the salute from his fifth uncle. But now the three heavyweight uncles have returned to Beijing, and it is Zhu Yunhuan's turn to receive them, and he has to accept the salute here.

This matter was extremely important to Zhu Yunwen. He discussed it carefully with Lu for a long time and discussed a series of details.

Since he wanted to be the crown prince, he should have dignity. Only in this way could he reassure his grandfather and make his uncles fear him. As for Zhu Yunhuan's turning aside when his fifth uncle saluted him a few days ago, Zhu Yunwen thought it was a stupid move.

They were all vying for the position of crown prince, so of course they couldn't be weak. Facing those princes with special status, they had to be even tougher, so that they could gain the trust of the emperor's grandfather.

Zhu Yunwen also considered the fact that his grandfather was protecting his shortcomings, but he felt that the crown prince should be dignified as the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty. A dignified crown prince who could intimidate the princes would definitely be more loved by his grandfather!
The three great princes paid a visit to Zhu Yuanzhang in their ordinary clothes. They stood solemnly behind Zhu Yuanzhang in front of Zhu Yunwen, trying hard to maintain their aura.

Zhu Yunhuan acted as if nothing had happened. After the three vassal kings entered the imperial city, his work was temporarily over.

After the complicated ceremony, they arrived at the side hall. Old Zhu looked at his sons and could not hide his sadness. "Second son, your eldest brother is gone!"

Zhu Chong lowered his head, and after much effort he finally said, "Father, please accept my condolences."

Old Zhu slapped his thigh in grief, "How could he be so cruel? How could he abandon us?"

Seeing Old Zhu crying, Zhu Chong and others also started crying.

Seeing this atmosphere, Zhu Yunwen immediately lowered his head and began to shed tears. This is the best way to show filial piety. Especially showing one's filial piety in front of the emperor's grandfather is definitely a tried and tested plus point.

Old Zhu was wiping his tears, and suddenly he saw Zhu Yunhuan standing on the side. Not only was he not crying, but there was no expression on his face.

Old Zhu immediately took off his shoes in anger and yelled, "Your father is gone, and you are the most heartless person!"

Zhu Yunhuan didn't say much. He didn't shout or argue after being hit a few times by Old Zhu's shoe soles.

"Look at him, Yunwen has lost so much weight that he looks unrecognizable!" Old Zhu pointed at Zhu Yunwen and said to his sons, "When his father was sick, Yunwen stayed by his side day and night. He was even more filial during the time when the coffin was kept. It hurts us all to see him like that."

Then Old Zhu pointed at Zhu Yunhuan and cursed, "Look at this again! Look, does he look like he has no father?"

Zhu Yunwen was secretly delighted. His grandfather had seen his performance. As long as he was filial, that was enough. No matter how much trouble that dude made, it was useless!

The person who was happiest to see Zhu Yunhuan being beaten was none other than Zhu Yunwen.

But in the eyes of Zhu Chong and others, this scene has other meanings.

They have all lived with Lao Zhu to some extent before, and they all know that if Lao Zhu is really angry, he will not be like this now.

Zhu Gang took the initiative to say, "Father, I don't think that my nephew Yunhu is unfilial. Now that my brother is gone, the ones who are most sad must be my nephew and his friends."

When Old Zhu glared at him, Zhu Gang immediately lowered his head and said nothing: The saddest person is me!
Old Zhu sighed and said, "It's good that you guys came back to see your big brother and send him off. He can leave with peace of mind. You guys are all doing evil and breaking the law. What he fears most is that we will punish you guys!"

Zhu Chong and others felt the same way, as they all had some criminal records of breaking the law. Even though they all felt that Old Zhu really wouldn't do anything to them, even though they knew that their father and brother had played the good cop and the bad cop in the past.

But now, there is one less backer who protects them openly.

Old Zhu looked at Zhu Chong and said, "Second brother, since the eldest brother is gone, the position should be given to you."

The atmosphere in the side hall suddenly became solemn; this topic was too sensitive.

Zhu Chong immediately knelt down in fear and cried out in sorrow, "Father, please understand. I dare not covet the throne!"

Old Zhu pretended not to hear and said, "The rules we set in the early years have always been that the son inherits the throne after the father dies. The eldest brother's position as the East Palace has been very stable over the years. His ability is one thing, and you brothers don't have any wild thoughts, that's another."

This time, Zhu Gang and others could no longer sit still and knelt down one after another.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at the atmosphere and found that Zhu Yunwen had actually knelt down before.

Just when Zhu Yunwen was considering whether to follow the crowd and kneel down, Old Zhu continued, "It's just that the eldest brother has not been the emperor after all! It's not excessive to establish a prince now!" Zhu Yunwen, who was kneeling, trembled. One of the things he feared most was very likely to happen.

The emperor's grandfather's favoritism has always been obvious to all, but now there are still many princes, and no one will say anything about establishing a crown prince!
Zhu Chong immediately shouted, "Father, I have absolutely no intention of doing that. I dare not!"

Old Zhu narrowed his eyes, looked at Zhu Chong and asked, "You really don't have that idea?"

Zhu Chong knelt down in a very proper manner, prostrating himself on the ground and saying loudly, "I dare not do that!"

"If you don't dare to have it, then you have it!" Old Zhu said with a smile, "Yes, how can the prince not have this idea! Let alone the prince, our two grandsons are fighting for it now!"

Zhu Yunwen shuddered and dared not say a word.

Old Zhu continued, "It's better if you don't dare to have it. You know that it won't work if you try, so just be a vassal king. Second and third brothers, if I don't establish a crown prince or a grandson, will you blame me?"

Zhu Chong immediately responded straightforwardly, "Your Majesty, I dare not complain!"

Zhu Gang also immediately expressed his opinion, "Father, I have always been respectful and I dare not think too much. Regarding the matter of the crown prince, I have always thought that it should be my brother!"

No wonder Zhu Chong was later given the posthumous title of King Qin Min, while Zhu Yuanzhang was given the title of King Jin Gong for Zhu Gang.

Even though Zhu Gang had a long history of bad deeds, he was basically able to handle the things assigned by Old Zhu.

Old Zhu nodded with satisfaction and said, "That's fine. Since none of you have any interest in the throne, we won't bother to think about appointing a crown prince."

Zhu Chong and others wanted to cry. It was not that they had no interest in the throne, but that their father simply did not give them a chance.

But now, even if I was just being polite, my father took it seriously.

There was no way to reason about this matter, but Zhu Chong and others did not dare to express any dissatisfaction. They were princes with unlimited glory and high status outside, but when they returned to the palace and in front of Zhu, they were useless sons who could be beaten and scolded at will!
Old Zhu looked at Zhu Chong and the others and said, "You will go to court tomorrow. Some people have said that the court should appoint a crown prince. You go over and make your point clear!"

Zhu Chong and the others gritted their teeth and swallowed their blood, "Your son obeys your order!"

Although they knew that their father would most likely not continue to appoint a crown prince, just a few words completely blocked any possibility, which also made Zhu Chong and others feel powerless.

Old Zhu slowly stood up and said, "Let's go see your eldest brother. We won't go over. We are old, and we can't see the boss anymore!"

Looking at Old Zhu's desolate back, Zhu Chong and others felt unhappy.

Zhu Chong got up, looked at Zhu Yunxun and said, "Nephew, take us there!"

When Zhu Yunwen heard this, he quickly said, "Third brother, take the emperor's uncles over there."

After saying this, Zhu Yunwen solemnly performed the family greetings to Zhu Chong and others, and hurriedly chased after Old Zhu.

The Imperial Grandfather is sad now, and I have to accompany him. Since the Imperial Grandfather has decided to establish the Imperial Grandson, the Imperial Uncles are not important!
Looking at Zhu Yunwen's back, Zhu Chong was somewhat sarcastic, "I still underestimated my nephew Yunwen! He supported himself to receive the salute in front of the Fengxian Hall, and now he is pretending to salute."

Zhu Gang also said dissatisfiedly, "He has too many little thoughts. Father must be angry too! He is not even the crown prince yet he dares to follow behind father to receive gifts. This is unacceptable. When he becomes the crown prince, he will ride on the heads of us uncles!"

Zhu Yunhuan then said, "It was difficult to salute when I was wearing the imperial robes."

Zhu Chong immediately stepped forward and asked, "You can't even turn sideways? It seems that our well-read nephew has no idea of ​​the big picture and the small details! Your royal grandfather also set a rule that the princes are elders, and the emperor must also behave in a family manner in private!"

Zhu Yunxun chuckled and said, "Second Uncle, he's just a kid, why bother with him about these things?"

Zhu Di suddenly said, "He is just a kid. You are one year younger than him, right? You, a famous playboy, know all this. How could he not know? It seems that we, the emperor's uncles, are just like that in his eyes!"

(End of this chapter)